I use this method for all myI use this method for all my pickling. I have never had a bad jar and they seem to be good for a long time. I do leave my jars upside down for at least a day on a towel just to be sure they are sealed. They then go into our "spider bedroom" (cold storage). A jar made Oct 2013 was opened in April 14 and we are still sporadically eating from that jar kept in the fridge today Aug 2014.